GAME NOTES
 
INDIANAPOLIS – The final non-conference matchup for the 2022 Butler football team will take place this Saturday in Brookings, S.D. The Bulldogs will face #3 South Dakota State at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium. Kick-off will be under the lights at 7 PM eastern, 6 PM central.
 
Gameday
Date: Saturday, September 17
Time: 7:00 PM (EST)
Location: Brookings, S.D. / Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium
Live Stats: GoJacks.com (Statbroadcast)
Watch: Midco Sports / Jackrabbits All-Access / ESPN+
 
2022 PFL Standings
Butler 2-0
Stetson 2-0
Davidson 1-1
Dayton 1-1
Presbyterian 1-1
San Diego 1-1
St. Thomas 1-1
Valparaiso 1-1
Marist 0-1
Drake 0-2
Morehead State 0-2
 
2022 PFL Schedule – Week 3
Princeton at Stetson - 1 PM
Kentucky State at Dayton - 1 PM
Valparaiso at Dartmouth - 1:30 PM
Drake at Idaho - 3 PM
Presbyterian at Western Carolina - 3:30 PM
Columbia at Marist - 6 PM
Kentucky Christian at Morehead State - 6 PM
Butler at #3 South Dakota State - 7 PM
St. Andrews at Davidson - 7 PM
San Diego at UC Davis - 10 PM
 
Bulldog Bits
- Four different Bulldogs rushed for a touchdown last weekend in the 45-10 win over Taylor. BU rushed the ball 49 times for 290 yards, averaging 5.9 yards per carry.
- Butler has outscored their opponent 52-15 in the second half this season.
- Butler only punted the ball one time vs. Taylor. They scored on five-straight possessions before taking a knee to ice the win.
- Luka Zurak is 2-for-2 on field goal attempts this year. He hit a season-long 34-yard kick last weekend.
- The Bulldogs are 9-for-9 this year on scoring chances in the red zone. They have seven touchdowns and two field goals.
- Johnny O'Shea found the end zone for the first time this season last Saturday. He caught a 12-yard pass from Bushka to open up the scoring in the fourth quarter.
- Adam Sturtz returned an interception 75 yards for a BU touchdown in the third quarter vs. Taylor.
- Butler recorded two sacks last weekend. Carson Gulgin and Jacob Cain shared the first and Steven Williams II was credited with the second.
- Mike Wymer led BU and tied his career-high with five tackles against the Trojans.
 
SCOUTING #3 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE: The Jackrabbits are 1-1 heading into the third week of the regular season. SDSU gave Iowa a scare in Week 1, but were ultimately defeated 7-3 in Iowa City. They returned home the following weekend to deliver a 24-22 win over UC Davis. QB Mark Gronowski ran for two touchdowns and passed for another to lead his team to victory against the ranked Aggies. Gronowski missed the 2021 season due to injury, but made the HERO Sports FCS Freshman All-America Team in 2020. So far in 2022, Gronowski has completed passes to 10 different receivers, covering 197 yards. His top two targets are Jaxon Janke and Isaiah Davis. The Bulldogs will have to game plan for Davis, who leads the team with 43 carries for 162 yards. The defensive leader for the Jackrabbits is junior linebacker Adam Bock. He made 13 tackles against Iowa and followed that performance with nine stops in front of his home crowd.
 
RB Isaiah Davis, WR Jaxon Janke, and TE Tucker Kraft were named to the preseason watch list for the 2022 Walter Payton Award, which is presented to the top offensive player in the FCS.
 
LAST MEETING: Butler opened the 2013 season at South Dakota State, taking a 55-14 loss. The Jackrabbits were ranked sixth in the FCS poll that year and showed why by recording 546 yards of total offense. SDSU scored at least 10 points in every quarter and got three passing touchdowns from quarterback Austin Sumner.
 
Butler was led by QB Matt Lancaster in the contest. He completed 17 of his 26 pass attempts for 140 yards while adding 63 yards on six rushing attempts.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES: South Dakota State won the only meeting between these two programs.
 
The lone meeting between Butler and South Dakota State was played on Aug. 31, 2013. Kick-off at Coughlin-Alumni came at 6:05 PM.
 
2-0: Butler is 2-0 at the start of the season for the first time since 2018. The Bulldogs upset #24 Youngstown State that year and pulled out a 31-17 victory at Taylor.
 
Butler has not opened a season 3-0 since 2009. That year, the Bulldogs posted wins over Albion, Franklin and Hanover. Their winning streak stretched to eight games as BU went on to win the PFL title with an 11-1 overall record.
 
MOVE THE CHAINS: Butler leads the Pioneer Football League and ranks 12th in the country in third down conversion percentage. The offense has converted on third down 15 times on 29 attempts (52%).
 
Butler went 6-for-12 on third down last weekend against Taylor.
 
'DAWGS PLAYING D: Butler's defense gave up a TD on the first drive of the game vs. Taylor, but only allowed one first down after that for the remainder of the first half.
 
Butler limited Taylor to just 10 first downs in the game. Seven came on the ground and two came off Bulldog penalties.
 
UP NEXT: The Bulldogs are off next weekend and will use the extra time to prepare for Davidson in the PFL opener. BU will play at Davidson on Saturday, Oct. 1. Kick-off is set for 1 PM.
 
The Bulldogs are 6-8 all-time against the Wildcats. Davidson has won the last three meetings, scoring 40+ points in each matchup. Butler's last win over Davidson was a three-point victory (20-17) in North Carolina during the 2016 season.